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One of my oldest + best friends is starting to plan her very own destination wedding. And my biggest piece of advice to her? Book the Round Hill Hotel and Villas. Located in breathtaking Montego Bay, Jamaica, this hidden gem offers an intimate and elegant venue with an incredibly laid-back vibe.

Easily accessible from most major international cities, Montego Bay, Jamaica has everything you and your guests would want in a destination — golden sand beaches, breathtaking views of the Caribbean sea and lots and lots of sunshine! The venue has an assortment of venues on site such as the Spa Lawn and Hanover Terrace that can accommodate intimate celebrations for two or weddings of up to 150. Round Hill even assures exclusivity, promising you that your wedding or event is the only one for the weekend. Featuring Ralph Lauren inspired oceanfront hotel rooms, luxe 2-6 bedroom private villas with pools + dedicated staff as well as an award winning culinary team and on-site wedding planners, what’s not to love about Round Hill Hotel and Villas?

There is something so romantic and special about this venue, I’m just dying to visit! To top it all off, Round Hill offers couples on-site wedding planners and a concierge to make sure planning is as stress-free and enjoyable as possible. Head over here for more information and to get started with booking your big day!

What do you get when you pair the stunning work of Amy Arrington with a dreamy Jamaica destination wedding? Well apparently you get pure gorgeousness. Her images are like a virtual vacation to this couples’ most precious moments of their big day, and you can see every last one right here.

From Amy Arrington…Kelsey and Kevin were married in beautiful Montego Bay, Jamaica, on April 6, 2013. Their ceremony took place on the beach between two palm trees with the clear Caribbean ocean in the background. To keep with the tropical theme, Kelsey wore a pink hibiscus flower in her hair, and Kevin wore a fun straw hat. One of our favorite details from their wedding was their “save the dates,” which were airline ticket themed. Another favorite detail from their wedding was the parting gifts for the guests, which were monogramed beach towels draped over each one of the chairs.

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This wedding is pretty much my idea of paradise. I mean — a destination shindig on the beaches of Jamaica with the ocean breeze blowing as you swap the I Dos? Well, it sounds like heaven. And while I can’t help but be a wee bit envious as the temps here in Boston slowly drop, I think I’ll head over to the gallery from Reign 7 Photography and start my virtual vacation right…now!

From the Bride… Description of our wedding day: Having a destination wedding has its challenges but all of those seemed to subside the day that I woke up knowing I was about to marry the man I had shared the last 9 years of my life with. The weather was great, the sky and the water were a perfect Jamaica blue- which was imperative because the ceremony and reception were scheduled to be outside.

All of our vendors were on time and our appointments went swimmingly. As we were wrapping up pictures pre-ceremony I glanced outside and noticed what looked like a tropical storm forming in the distance. I immediately went into panic mode, looked at my Maids of Honor and said “Im getting Married. Right. Now.” We rushed everyone downstairs and outside, I didn’t realize how fast I was moving, let alone that I was running, until one of my Maids yelled “Where are her shoes?” and the other yelled back “She is wearing them!!!” Our wedding coordinator, Charlene, was amazing and kept saying, “It won’t happen, it can’t happen, not to you and Joe, to anyone but you and Joe!” We did get a bit of a shower but it was, in true Jamaican fashion, about 3 minutes long – just enough to let us know that we can’t control everything and that life, including our marriage, would be a series of surprises and we just need to roll with it.

As I came down the aisle it felt so much more serious than I had anticipated – we are a fun, funny couple and I could see Joe start to get choked up. As if the island read my mind, a gust of wind caught my veil in a neighboring bush and in a moment of total awkwardness, I ripped it off my head while hysterically laughing with my dad. That loosened up the ceremony right away and it just felt more relaxed and more “us”.

Our reception was held on site at the Sugar Mill Falls water park, which I loved. I work for a music company in NYC so the set list was really important to us, I don’t think the DJ had ever received a list of 250 “do not play” songs! But to be fair the “play” list was a lot longer so he had a good amount of material to work with. We danced the night away to Ja Rule, Montell Jordan, Sean Paul and a slew of throwback songs that truly encapsulated our near decade of dating!

Inspiration around the day: Jamaica has always held a very special place in our hearts, it was where we first fell in love almost exactly 9 years prior. But what keeps us coming back are the people, the culture and the warmness the country embodies. It was important for us to use as many local vendors and have as many local accents as possible while adding our own style to our special day.

The special touches that made our day extra lovely: I really liked that we had special pieces of us woven into the day. Representing my old, new, borrowed and blue were…. Old- Pearls from my late Grandmother wrapped around my flowers, New- My Dress, Borrowed- My headband was worn by my close friend, Danielle, in her wedding and she handed it down to me, Blue- I had my married name and our wedding date sewn in blue into the skirt of my dress. Other special touches – I gave Joe an engraved watch that said “Best Day Ever” and he gave me his mother’s engagement ring to have made into anything that I wish.

DIY Projects: I created a lot of the accents for the wedding myself with the help of a slew of Etsy vendors. For all future brides, get a Pinterest board going and an Etsy account ASAP!